[MUST READ] Cole Swindell thanks “Nashville” for being there for him when his Dad passed away

“It was the best year of my life and I was in the middle of my radio tour when I got the call that we had lost my dad in a freak accident. How could that possibly be in the master plan? He was the best guy in the world, my biggest fan and was the first person I ever heard play the guitar and sing. I was in shock and lost. Who did I turn to?”

This week Cole Swindell opened up in an open letter to “Nashville” and it’s really beautiful. He touches on one of the things I love most about Country Music. The feeling of family and community…the bond in our values and our hearts…knowing we’ll always be there for one another. I’ll be there for you, you’ll be there for me, just like Nashville was there for Cole after the biggest loss of his life.

“Nashville. This town. My family. Country radio … It was like everyone had my back no matter what media partner, label, publishing company or PRO they worked for and I’ll never forget it. I realized that some of my heroes, like Dierks Bentley, had also lost their dads and were there for me. Things like that make me proud to live in THIS town and proud to be a part of this format.

‘Country’ means a lot more to me than the sound coming out of your speakers. To me it’s a big family. It’s how you treat others, how you were raised. It’s lyrics that can change your life. All that. We are all getting to do what we love and that’s because somebody took a chance on us. I remember calling radio stations as a kid, annoying the DJ’s to play my favorite songs from George Strait, Reba, Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney and every other artist that I still love to this day. Now, to think there are kids doing the same for my music is mind blowing!”

You can read the full letter here. He goes on to talk about breaking his Mom’s heart the day he moved to Nashville, how he felt like an outsider and he wants to thank you for your support of this song. A song he wrote for his late father.